Snakewood Cracked

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massman

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I finished a sierra with a very expensive piece of snakewood last fall. I have been reading about this wood cracking often. Because of this I held the pen back from trying to sell it giving it at least 6 months to set. Well its been 8 months and I went to put it out at a show this weekend only to find that it had indeed cracked. Does anyone know why this happens to this wood and what if anything can be done to prevent this? I also had an ebony wood baron starting to crack. I noticed it as I prepared for this show. Is this common as well?

Thanks!
 
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I'll bet if yuou search the archives you will find all of the info you wver want to read about snakewood and how to keep it from cracking. The theories and solutions are myriad and I'm not sure any of them work. I'm sure someone will disagree with me on this and if so maybe it will help. I drill and turn the blanks but do not glue in the tubes. I leave them for several weeks and if the tube will not slide in I ream it out and conitnue this for a couple of more time. Then I glue in the tube, finish turning and set it back on the shelf and wait for it to crack. Then I fill the crack with a CA and sanding dust slurry and complete the sanding and finishing. A repaired cracked snakewood pen is nicer than most other wood pens I've made. The repaired cracks are almost invisible. Good luck with your quest. But be careful, the path will be crowded.
Do a good turn daily!
Don
Originally posted by massman
<br />I finished a sierra with a very expensive piece of snakewood last fall. I have been reading about this wood cracking often. Because of this I held the pen back from trying to sell it giving it at least 6 months to set. Well its been 8 months and I went to put it out at a show this weekend only to find that it had indeed cracked. Does anyone know why this happens to this wood and what if anything can be done to prevent this? I also had an ebony wood baron starting to crack. I noticed it as I prepared for this show. Is this common as well?

Thanks!
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Both snakewood and ebony crack. (period) I took atleast 10 preventative steps, it cracked, the best bet is to avoid it or to learn to fix cracks. I made two snakewood pens, there won't be more.
 
It's almost funny that we even try---there are only two kinds of Snakewood---the one that is cracked and the other one that is going to crack.
I never buy the stuff and would never sell it.
 
Ebony, snakewood and pink ivory are frequently reported to crack. In fact it seems to be the rule that if you make a pen from one of these woods, it will crack. As previously asked, "Why bother?". I won't, there are enough dissapointments of my own doing. I don't need outside influences ruining my work and wasting my money and time. The best cure is prevention.
 
I've made only two snakewood pens, one cracked and one didn't.. none of my ebony has cracked YET.. but my preference is African black wood rather then pure ebony.. I don't think ebony polishes up very well.. at least mine hasn't. (and it smells like a wet cow lot when you turn it). Pink Ivory is on my banned list.. I haven't succeeding in getting past the drilling stage with PI.. so no more for me.
 
I've made two pens from Snakewood, about a year ago, and, so far, neither one has cracked. I got the wood from Darrick. The only ebony pens I've made were from Mun Ebony(1 total) and Asian Ebony(several). They haven't cracked but I've never made a pen from Macassar Ebony, although I have used small pieces of it as centerbands. I've only made one pen from PI and sold it. I didn't have any problems with it while drilling or turning, then I read all the horror stories about it. I doubt I'll do any more, since I wasn't crazy aobut the wood anyway.
 
Out of all of the pens I have made of Snakewood, I have only had one that has not cracked. A secret voodoo dance did the trick. That and another super top, extra secret method. It belongs to my sister now. I always ask her if it has cracked yet? [:D]

snakewood1.jpg


Fangar
 
Well... Uh. hem. It involves a well ironed turning frock, a 1/2 pint of ice cream and a ceiling fan. The rest is classified.

[;)]

Fangar
 
I've got some of Derrick's snakewood. Made a pen early last year, and it still has not cracked. They soak it in pentacryl. They guarantee it, don't know how much success they've had other than what I've seen first hand.
 
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